With the Golden Globes on an enforced hiatus next January, it was only a matter of time until another group started moving in.
The first signs came in mid-May when the Critics Choice Association set 1/9 for its 27th annual awards show. The date immediately had Hollywood insiders recalling how for many years early January was when the Globes took place at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. Recent reports that CCA officials were seen checking out the BH ballroom suggest CCA may see a future for itself as the new uncontroversial successor to the Globes.
There aren’t a lot of groups that have what it takes to do that, but CCA does. It’s no stranger to awards marketers, studios & contenders, having bestowed film & TV awards for 26 years (pictured), and it already has a national live telecast deal in place with The CW Network. It also helps that CCA’s been well regarded in Hollywood for many years under CEO Joey Berlin.
Unlike HFPA’s obscure members, many CCA critics & reporters are well known to publicists & celebs. Perhaps the worst criticism of the critics is that they hand out too many awards — but in Hollywood, that’s nothing to complain about!